(HealthNewsDigest.com) - CHICAGO, June 6, 2014 -- Hill-Rom (NYSE: HRC), a worldwide provider of clinical workflow solutions for the health care environment, has announced a new partnership with Ecolab®, a global leader in water, hygiene and energy technologies and services, offering hand-hygiene solutions designed for the health care market. The partnership focuses on the Hill-Rom® Hand Hygiene Compliance Solution, which integrates products and technologies from both companies, and will debut this week at one of the industry's largest events, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology's (APIC) 2014 annual conference in Anaheim, Calif.

The integrated system features Ecolab hand-hygiene products and dispensers that work with the Hill-Rom® real-time locating solution (RTLS) to effectively monitor hand-hygiene compliance. Hand hygiene is a straightforward and effective method for preventing costly and deadly health care-associated infections (HAIs)(1), yet many hospitals struggle to achieve even 50 percent compliance with recommended protocols.(2) The Hill-Rom Hand Hygiene Compliance Solution continually monitors the patient care environment, reminding key personnel about critical hand-washing events, and providing the data to help drive improved compliance. Institutions that have implemented the Hand Hygiene Compliance Solution have experienced a significant increase in their hand hygiene compliance.(3)

"The Hill-Rom Hand Hygiene Compliance Solution directly addresses the challenges hospitals are facing with respect to HAIs, as well as responding to regulatory requirements," says Adam McMullin, Vice President and General Manager, Hill-Rom® Clinical Workflow Solutions. "The Hill-Rom Hand Hygiene Compliance Solution is a great example of our technology platform, which is designed to automate the clinical environment, help improve productivity and safety, and enhance the patient experience."

Hill-Rom's Hand Hygiene Monitoring and Ecolab

Ecolab's Nexa(TM) hands-free dispenser was designed for the health care environment and features soaps and sanitizers that are specifically formulated for the high-frequency hand-hygiene needs of health care workers.

"Hospitals now have the opportunity to work with two leading companies with extensive expertise in hand-hygiene compliance and HAI prevention," says Kimberly Lees, Director of Marketing for Ecolab Healthcare. "Ecolab partners with customers to understand their specific needs and works with them, step-by-step, to improve compliance. Hill-Rom is an expert in turning the data from compliance monitoring into useful information for customers. By bringing together exceptional products, personally delivered with informative reports, hospitals can have a comprehensive system to help improve hand-hygiene compliance rates across their entire facility."

About the Hill-Rom Hand Hygiene Compliance Solution

The Hill-Rom Hand Hygiene Compliance Solution has tracked millions of hand-hygiene events. The system uses badge-based locating technology offering automatic, continuous monitoring and recording of every time a staff member uses a hand-hygiene station. It alerts caregivers by providing a gentle reminder upon entering a care environment. All of this happens without adding steps to the clinical workflow. Once installed, the system creates a wireless web of connectivity in the patient care environment. This connectivity can be leveraged beyond tracking to include reminding and reporting hand-hygiene events via Nurse Call, Smart Bed Connectivity, Staff Locating or other real-time locating tools.

Hill-Rom is a leading global medical technology company with more than 6,500 employees in over 100 countries. We partner with health care providers by focusing on patient care solutions that improve clinical and economic outcomes in five core areas: Advancing Mobility, Wound Care and Prevention, Clinical Workflow, Surgical Safety and Efficiency, and Respiratory Health. Around the world, Hill-Rom's people, products, and programs work towards one mission: Enhancing outcomes for patients and their caregivers.

A trusted partner at more than one million customer locations, Ecolab (ECL) is the global leader in water, hygiene and energy technologies and services that protect people and vital resources. With 2013 sales of $13 billion and 45,000 associates, Ecolab delivers comprehensive solutions and on-site service to promote safe food, maintain clean environments, optimize water and energy use and improve operational efficiencies for customers in the food, health care, energy, hospitality and industrial markets in more than 170 countries around the world.